He was considered a spoiled brat and a hot head and proved to be that and much more last night when drunken NAU freshman, Steven Jones, shot and killed one fellow student and wounded 3 others. The Northern Arizona University Police Department was notified at 1:20 a.m. of shots fired on north campus.
It is known that after the initial text alert, a residence hall director at Mountain View Hall called NAUPD at 1:24 a.m., verified the incident and then activated the public address system within minutes, telling all Mountain View residents to stay inside and lock their doors. Police were dispatched, the suspect was detained and the situation was secured at 1:22 a.m. Emergency services were on the scene by 1:33 a.m. to assist the victims. The incident took place in a parking lot on the northeast end of the Flagstaff Campus.
An error during the deployment of the NAU Alert system resulted in limited distribution of the initial alerts, which were sent as a precautionary measure to notify campus of the situation. A final all clear message was sent to the entire campus at 2:52 a.m.
According to police two separate student groups got into a fight. According to police Jones pulled out a gun and shot wounding Delta Chi Fraternity members Nicholas Prato, Kyle Zientek and Nicholas Piring, and killing Colin Brough.
Jones was arraigned at the Justice Court in the Coconino County Courthouse. He has been charged with the following felonies:
1 count first degree murder
3 counts aggravated assault
“We are shocked and deeply saddened by this incident. Our thoughts are with the victims and their families, and our entire Lumberjack family,” said NAU President Rita Cheng.
“I am shocked and very saddened over the tragic, senseless shootings that occurred this morning at NAU,” stated Arizona Representative Bob Thorpe. “Please pray for the families, for the quick recovery of those injured, and for everyone touched by this awful event.”